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Bloomberg
Kenya’s Supreme Court scuttled President Uhuru Kenyatta’s push to reshape the structure of the government, effectively halting plans to hold a referendum on the proposed changes.
The judgment upheld rulings by two lower courts that the president can’t seek constitutional amendments through a popular initiative, meaning Kenyatta acted illegally in spearheading the proposals.
“The Constitution of Kenya Amendment Bill of 2020 is unconstitutional,†Chief Justice Martha Koome said in a live broadcast of proceedings in the capital, Nairobi.
The case relates to the so-called Building Bridges Initiative, or BBI, which resulted from a rapprochement between Kenyatta and opposition leader Raila Odinga following a bitterly contested election in 2017. The initiative envisaged reintroducing the role of prime minister and two deputies and allowing the nation’s counties greater financial autonomy, as a way of promoting cohesion and ensuring inclusive development.
Kenyatta is due to step down after elections in August and has indicated that he will back Odinga’s bid for the presidency.